The invention relates to a small vehicle, particularly a wheel chair having a modular structure.
Wheel chairs, including those which are driven by a motor, usually comprise a wheel chair frame in which a seat is integrated, two wheels which can be driven and two wheels which can be either freely pivoted or steered by a motor wherein said wheels are directly coupled to said frame. The drivable wheels can be driven manually via hand rims or driven by a motor. Such wheel chairs often comprise a folding mechanism which allows folding of the wheel chair frame in order to reduce the overall size for the purpose of transport of the wheel chair. A wheel chair of this kind is for instance disclosed in EP 0 790 049 A2.
Wheel chairs of the kind as explained above are rather unsuitable for outdoor operation, that is for operation outside houses and particularly on uneven tracks, for instance tracks in fields or woods. The frame construction as described above has only a relatively low stability. Moreover, direct coupling of the wheels to a pipe frame only allows a suspension which is insufficient for uneven tracks since the only spring system is usually the one provided by the pneumatic tires.
Wheel chairs having acceptable driving and performance characteristics for outdoor operation are also known. However, the amount of time, work and effort needed for dismantling such wheel chairs for the purpose of transport is not acceptable.
There is a need for a small vehicle, particularly a wheel chair which has sufficient stability suitable also for outdoor operation as well as a drivability suitable for outdoor operation and, at the same time, can be dismantled so that transport thereof is possible in a typical trunk of an automobile.